20. Thawing Dawn/A. Savage
Solo debut from Parquet Courts’ Andrew Savage carries a strong alt-country vibe, with him leaning more toward his Texas roots than his current Brooklyn home.
Favorite Track: “Buffalo Calf Road”
19. In Spades/The Afghan Whigs
Latest release from 90s indie superstars, The Afghan Whigs. Not the same caliber album as classics like
Gentlemen or
Black Love, but a solid record nonetheless.
Favorite Track: “Demon in Profile”
18. Slowdive/Slowdive
Another 90s indie darling with their first album in twenty-two years. The self-titled Slowdive is a modern-day Shoegaze classic.
Favorite Track: “Sugar for the Pill”
17. August by Cake/Guided By Voices
First of two 2017 GBV releases is a sprawling double album,
August by Cake. Robert Pollard cranks out records at a mind-numbing pace.
Favorite Track: “Cheap Buttons”
16. Robyn Hitchcock/Robyn Hitchcock
The former Soft Boys front man is still going strong at sixty-four. I’m relatively new to his music, but like Pollard, he is incredibly prolific and still making excellent music.
Favorite Track: “Mad Shelley’s Letterbox”
15. Ty Segall/Ty Segall
Garage Glam Punk wizard Segall is another artist who just churns albums out. I’m a casual fan of his, but I really like his self-tiled record.
Favorite Track: “Orange Color Queen”
14. Sleep Well Beast/The National
I’m always down for some National.
Sleep Well Beast isn’t as strong as most of their previous output, but it still hits my sweet spot.
Favorite Track: “The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness”
13. Notes of Blue/Son Volt
An upgrade from 2013’s
Honky Tonk, but still a lower-tier Son Volt record. However, lower-tier Volt still sounds good to these ears. Nice to have Jay plug in again for a handful of tracks.
Favorite Track: “Promise the World”
12. The Deep Set/The Bats
I discovered and fell in love with New Zealand’s Flying Nun Records this summer. The Clean, The Verlaines, The Chills, The Bats, etc. Just an incredible music scene. Another strong record from The Bats.
Favorite Track: “Rooftops”
11. Heavy Meta/Ron Gallo
A late 2017 discovery for me, but a rewarding one. Numerous old-school rock and roll influences throughout, but never comes off as overly derivative.
Favorite Track: “Young Lady, You’re Scaring Me”
10. Anything Could Happen/Bash & Pop
Twenty-four years later, Tommy Stinson resurrects his post-Replacements band, Bash & Pop, and cranks out a dozen tracks for those who still suffer from ‘Mats withdrawal.
Favorite Track: “On the Rocks”
9. Rips/Rips
Rips is a Brooklyn band strongly-influenced by past NYC acts like The Feelies & Television. They toured relentlessly for over a year before hitting the studio with Parquet Courts’ producer, Austin Brown, to record their self-titled debut.
Favorite Track: “Malibu Entropy”
8. Relatives in Descent/Protomartyr
Fourth album from the Detroit-based band that sounds like David Berman fronting a post-punk outfit. Another new foray for me musically, coming off my 2017 immersed in classic post-punk music.
Favorite Track: “My Children”
7. Hatteras Night, A Good Luck Charm/Will Johnson
Good ol’ Will Johnson – a true example of steady consistency. I like pretty much everything this guy does. Again, not one of the best works in his ever-growing catalog, but pretty damn good.
Favorite Track: “Predator”
6. Bobby Fuller Died for Your Sins/Chuck Prophet
Former Green on Red guitarist has put together quite the solo career.
Bobby Fuller is another excellent record in a string of them. Chuck isn’t getting any younger, but he continues to put out quality music.
Favorite Track: “Alex Nieto”
5. How Did I Find Myself Here?/The Dream Syndicate
Paisley Underground heroes The Dream Syndicate return with their first studio album in nearly thirty years. Yet another band I didn’t discover until 2017, but very glad I did.
Favorite Track: “Glide”
4. Rot/Bed Wettin’ Bad Boys
Hateful name. Very good band. This Australian group sounds like a cross between The Replacements and
Bee Thousand/
Alien Lanes-era Guided By Voices. Album showed up late on my 2017 radar but has quickly solidified regular rotation.
Favorite Track: “Away”
3. Hey Summer/Lost Balloons
Another band that would have been well outside my wheelhouse in years past. Heard some good things about them and very happy I followed up on it. Elements of punk, garage rock, jangle pop, and power pop merge to make great songs that will lodge themselves in your brain.
Favorite Track: “Feed the Pain”
2. Need to Feel Your Love/Sheer Mag
Love this record. Philly D.I.Y. throwback punk band that’s spent a good amount of time absorbing Thin Lizzy & Dwight Twilley Band and injecting it with a touch of funk, soul & disco. Lead singer Tina Halladay’s distorted, raspy vocals run the gamut from tender to tough, taking on wide-ranging topics from the current political morass to heartache.
Favorite Track: “Need to Feel Your Love”
1. How Do You Spell Heaven/Guided By Voices
Everything’s coming up Pollard. The ever-changing GBV line-up has him reuniting with former bandmate and lead guitarist, Doug Gillard. Coming off the heels of the double album
August By Cake,
How Do Spell Heaven delivers plenty of swagger and crunch and reminds me a lot of GBV's excellent 2001 album,
Isolation Drills. No signs of the sixty year-old Pollard slowing down anytime soon.
Favorite Track: “Steppenwolf Mausoleum”